Various electrical connection boxes have been provided in automobiles and the like, such as a CAN (Controller Area Network) gateway ECU for connecting sub-networks in a CAN and performing protocol conversion, and a junction box for distributing power from a battery to various electrical parts. One type of such an electrical connection box has a structure in which a printed circuit board provided with a lateral connection-type connector is housed in a case, and the opening of the case is blocked by attaching a cover through which the connector is inserted, as disclosed in JP 2005-136154A (Patent Document 1).
The number of electrical parts installed in automobiles has been increasing in recent years. In response to this, the number of electrical connection boxes such as ECUs provided in automobiles has been increasing as well, and there is demand for further downsizing and reduction in manufacturing cost.
However, with an electrical connection box such as that disclosed in Patent Document 1, the lateral connection-type connector is fixed to the printed circuit board using bolts in order to protect the lateral connection-type connector. This has led to an increase in the number of parts, and also led to an increase in assembly man-hours due to tightening the bolts, which has caused of an increase in manufacturing cost. Also, bolt fixing portions need to be formed in the connector housing for bolt fixing, and this has led to an increase in the size of the connector, which has then caused an increase in the size of the electrical connection box.
JP 2005-136154A is Patent Document 1 (discussed above).